Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

 


Access: Accessible using Athens username and password.


Explore the lives of over 50,000 people who have shaped the British past over the last 2400 years—from the Greek explorer Pytheas of the fourth century BC to Princess Diana, and from the founding fathers of America to the nawabs of Bengal.


Access the complete text of the new sixty-volume Oxford DNB: 50,000 biographies and 10,000 portrait illustrations, plus the complete text of the original thirty-three volume DNB.


There are a range of search options:

 

  • Quick search by name or word from every web page
  • Extensive biographical search options
  • Powerful full text search for people, places, and organizations enables you to find references to: people named Derby, the city of Derby, the football team Derby County.

You can also choose to search the bibliography, other reference material (such as archives and likenesses), and for contributors.


Extensive internal cross-referencing makes it possible to move to articles of related interest with ease. You can also explore the dictionary by theme e.g., follow a trail through the kings and queens or prime ministers of Britain.


Lists of external links to carefully selected web sites (including the National Archives) open up exciting new research possibilities.


New and revised biographies and new features will be added on a regular basis.